This was our first meeting of 2024 so it was good to welcome everyone back after christmas and new year, and to hear everyone’s news. We also welcomed a new lady along to the group.

Over cups of tea and coffee, and of course, biscuits, we had varied discussions including lymphoedema, Respect Forms in hospital, Coaching v Counselling, Penny Brohn Retreat, hyperbaric oxygen therapy, side effects and trying different brands of letrozole, Moving Forward Courses run locally by Breast Cancer Now – see notes below:

For anyone struggling with Letrozole, there are at least 5 brands of Letrozole that we know of which are or have been taken by members of the group so you could ask your pharmacy for a different brand to try. If that is better for you then ask your GP to make your prescriptions BRAND SPECIFIC in future.
Pharmacists and GPs will tell you “the ingredients are the same” but its the extra “padding ingredients” that are added to the drug which you might react to.
If that doesn’t work, you could ask your GP or Oncologist to switch to Tamoxifen. Don’t suffer side effects in silence – you have other options. Everyone reacts differently to a particular brand of drug so you just have to try them and see if / what the side effects are.

FEMARA made by Novartis Pharmaceuticals UK Ltd,

BRISTOL LABORATORIES LTD,

CRESCENT Pharma Ltd,

MANX HEALTHCARE

ACTAVIS

Moving Forward Course run by Breast Cancer Now – https://breastcancernow.org/information-support/support-you/moving-forward

For anyone who’s finished their treatment for Breast Cancer and wants to do the Moving Forward course, it covers all areas of your life after cancer including physical changes, emotions, nutrition, mental health, intimacy, lymphoedema, risk of recurrence. Its very very useful and we have all benefitted from the face to face ones, rather than the online ones.

The next ones are in Winchester on March 4th and 11th (you need to be available on both dates) and you can register on the link below:
https://breastcancernow.org/information-support/support-you/moving-forward-hampshire-winchester-4-11-march-2024

Or in Southampton on 14th and 21st March (you need to be available on both dates) and the link is below:
https://breastcancernow.org/information-support/support-you/moving-forward-hampshire-southampton-14-21-march-2024

At the Penny Brohn retreat in Bristol, you can have a weekend at their retreat to share and experience how simple lifestyle changes and self-care tools can improve health and wellbeing. They also have online info, newsletters, day sessions etc.
https://pennybrohn.org.uk/

We talked about Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) where you breathe in oxygen in a pressurised environment. It helped one of our members with her hand tremors and another said it helped with her neuropathy and pain. 

HBOT therapy in Winchester is about £100 per session but they often have offers available https://hybo2.com/

Solent MS Therapy Centre is a charity in Portsmouth offering HBOT to those diagnosed with cancer (you’ll have to join as an associate member) This link gives an idea of cost but it’s still showing last year’s prices:  https://solentmstc.org.uk/price-list-2022-23/

As with any therapy, we strongly advise seeking first-hand recommendations and doing your own research before committing to any treatment plans or financial commitments

This support group is open to anyone affected by cancer (doesn’t matter what type of cancer). Run by survivors for survivors, this group aims to offer a safe environment for those affected by cancer to get together over a cup of tea/ coffee and chat! Our About Us page gives more information on the group.

You are free to come and go as you wish. We look forward to seeing you! Please feel free to call us or fill in our contact form if you’d like to have a chat first. Don’t forget that we have a Whatsapp group which you can also join if you’d like to chat more or ask questions of the other members; just email us your mobile number and we’ll add you to the Whatsapp group.  If you’re in the Whatsapp group already, you can let us know if you’re coming along on there. 

Date: Tuesday 16 January 2024
Time: 19:30-21:00
Venue: Wessex Cancer Trust, 91-95 Winchester Rd, Chandler’s Ford, Eastleigh SO53 2GG (just above Domino’s Pizza)
Cost: £1 donation

We normally meet here on the third Tuesday of the month.

We look forward to seeing you at our next meeting and if you are new, and would like to come along but would prefer to chat to us beforehand, please contact us or leave a message on our voicemail at 01962 658170